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Irvingia Weight Loss Results

Irvingia is a West African plant extract that can help you lose weight. "In the largest placebo controlled human study, those taking Irvingia lost 28 pounds over a 10-week period compared to a loss of only up to 3 pounds in the placebo group. The study participants did not alter their diet," according to researchers J.L. Ngondi, B.C. Etoundi, C.B. Nyangono, C.M. Mbofung and J.E. Oben at the Laboratory of Nutrition and Nutritional Biochemistry at the University of Yaounde in Cameroon.

  1. Leptin Resistance

    • Leptin is the substance that helps break down fat in fat cells (adipocytes), and tells your brain to tell you you're not hungry. But your fat cells keep you from losing weight by causing "leptin resistance." They do this by producing more C-reactive protein (CRP), a compound that is pro-inflammatory. However, the study indicates that if you take Irvingia you will produce less CRP, so you will have less resistance to leptin, which allows it to break down more fat. Also, leptin subdues chronic hunger messages from the brain.

    Crucial Hormone

    • Your fat cells keep you resistant to leptin and insulin, and also lower your levels of adiponectin. That is the crucial hormone that makes you sensitive and nonresistant to insulin, and also promotes cardiovascular health. In the study, Irvingia increased adiponectin levels in overweight people.

    Bad Enzyme

    • Glycerol-3-phosphate dehydrogenase is an enzyme that helps convert glucose into triglycerides.Triglycerides increase the size of your fat cells, which of course you do not want. Irvingia has been shown to weaken glycerol-3-phosphate dehydrogenase activity. That means you would convert less glucose to fat in your body.

    Inhibits Amylase

    • The enzyme amylase breaks carbohydrates down in your digestive tract so your body can fully absorb them. But to lose weight, you do not want to absorb all those starchy foods. Because Irvingia inhibits amylase, it reduces the amount of starches your body absorbs as sugar.

    Still Obscure

    • Not much information is available about Irvingia beyond the data on the actual 2009 clinical trial entitled: "Effect of Irvingia Gabonensis (Bush Mango) on Parameters Associated With Metabolic Syndrome." There are also materials available from Life Extension, the company that markets Irvingia as "Integra-Lean." On "Low Carb Confidential," a blogger writes "If you do a search on (Irvingia), you find relatively little. Google returns 28,000 hits on it, while hoodia--the last miracle weight loss potion from Africa, returns 13,000,000." Yet, available data are promising for effective weight loss.

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